"Do You?"

CAUTION: Contains discussion on controverial political and human rights issues.

Do You?

“I do,” is a widely used, very simple affirmation. I use it all the time, I do. I do like my pepperoni pizza on Friday nights. I do enjoy driving my loud, fast muscle car, and I do get annoyed easily by . . . certain public speakers. On the other hand, that simple phrase, in certain scenarios, is a powerful statement of commitment to what we hope will be a life-long, mutually respectful relationship. a relationship where parties agree to be supportive, honest, thoughtful, and kind to the others and to be accountable for the welfare of each other. Right? Of course, the first “I do” that comes to mind is the one, or the two, that we hear in a wedding ceremony in response to the question from the pastor, “Do you take this person to be your partner/spouse/husband/wife, to live together in (holy) matrimony, to love them, to honor them, to comfort them, and to keep them in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, for as long as you both shall live?". The respondent would then say, "I do". And then, of course, the same is asked of the partner, and thus begins, presumably, a life-long, wholehearted commitment. And, yes, it does not always last for the rest of our lives, BUT certainly it lasts at least four years, generally, right? 

So, you’re wondering, exactly what am I thinking, right? Most of my readers will recognize right away, from the “four years” reference, that I’m talking about our government leaders. An “I DO!” is what I think we should hear from our leaders at the beginning of a four-year term. No matter the office, no matter the party affiliation, I want to hear, “I DO!” from those elected, accepting the notion that they are in a large part accountable for most aspects of our health, welfare, safety, and quality of life. And, not just for those who voted for them, but for all that they represent, regardless of our differences, no matter our political parties, no matter our ages, genders, colors, religions, regardless of our national origins, or incomes---none of that should matter. They represent all of us and they need to accept and commit to that.

The question then is, how do we make this happen? Is it as simple as administering a wedding vow ceremony to winning candidates? No, probably not. It has to begin in the early days of the election campaigns and the burden to make it happen is ours, mine, and yours. 

Now, to a more personal assessment of this . . . Harry Truman was president when I was born. The first presidential election I voted in was Nixon vs McGovern, so I’ve seen it all, or at least I thought I’d seen it all. I won’t get into who I voted for or why, just that my expectations have rarely been met by any of the candidates. Our multi-party system was devised simply to show respect to the diverse political views of our population, but I don’t think it’s working. Instead, many of the candidates are greedy and self-serving. When they win and get into office, they make decisions without regard to the thoughts of large segments of the population and focus on stopping the “other side” from doing anything significant. 

The bottom line here is that the winner of the election (any) must start right away working to find solutions that are a compromise. I know, some see that as a dirty word, but it’s not. In this case it means that they must not totally eliminate nor disregard the wishes of the other side. To come up with those solutions, the winner should invite the loser(s) to meet and work to find the answer that most nearly meets the needs, and wishes, of the largest group of those represented. 

Here education plays a significant role in this. Our elected officials should learn to provide clear and concise reason and logic for the decisions and avoid emotions and traditions in policy making. If there’s a large, vocal opposition, the leaders must be able to offer logical, compelling, alternatives and justification.

I don’t think we’ll see, in my lifetime, the type of changes I propose, the changes we need to once and for all eliminate the hatred, the prejudices, the discrimination in our society. I know the top issues in this year’s election, the border & immigration, foreign affairs (threats), jobs, taxes, healthcare, social security, and crime, gun-control, and law enforcement. In my mind, those are all easy BUT I’ve yet to hear any clear, concise, specific recommendations for any of that. So, here’s a few tips:

Immigration: Make clear that no one is in favor of an “open border” but a wall and a completely closed border is not the “America Way.” The answer is to CONTROL the border, and yes it will take some resources and some imagination, but it can be done. Start by opening discussions with the governments in the countries where the immigrants come from. Let them know that we want to help but CANNOT without their help and cooperation.

Crime, Murder, Guns: Again, make clear that we don’t want to “defund” police, nor must we confiscate all guns. Again, the answer is to CONTROL guns and crime like school massacres. This is more difficult because the start depends on reducing/eliminating all the things that cause crime, like anger, discrimination, racism, need . . . that stuff. My plan is complex but would eventually make law enforcement easier, would reduce the costs of prisons, courts, police departments, but needs the support and participation of all segments of our society, like insurance companies, schools, health care people, celebrities, sport stars, gun manufacturers, sellers, owners, yes . . . all of that.

Other critical controversial issues include a woman's right to choose and again, I can assure you our leaders are NOT "pro" abortion. They simply believe that an adult woman in America should have the right to make her own health care decisions.

And, of course, we need all of our leaders to work together with a singular goal of making these things better for all. And, I need a sincere, honest response at the end of the oath of office in “I DO!”